Crazysexycool

TLC stands for Tasty Lesbian Cunt.

Damn I loved this album when it came out. It's hard to explain to someone today just how cool TLC was and what kind of place they occupied in pop culture. For representation's sake, this is my 145th album and only the SECOND all-female group beside the Go-Gos.

I didn't remember it being this horny. Aside from waterfalls, just not that interesting

Great songs with slick, polished production and the right mix of R&B/hip hop, soul and pop ensuring massive crossover appeal. All star guest cast cameos. Sexy but never sleazy. The blueprint for all female groups that followed in their footsteps. This is a real winner.

It's seems that as much as I try to find one, there just isn't a teenage girl hidden away inside of me. I don't have any anger against this album. I just don't like it.

If this isn't the horniest album on this list, it's the horniest I've come across so far and probably the horniest album of the 90s, even it it didn't feature a gender bent cover of an already gender bent Prince song.

Bonafide classic. Full of bangers.

Omg, I was super excited just seeing this album pop up! This was the bangerrrrr in middle school and I can not even count how many times I’ve listened to it. And it is absolutely still a banger in every sense. I freaking loved every second of rediscovering this album in its totality!

Not my thing, but that doesn't mean it's without merit. If you like this sort of music I suppose this would be pretty good. But it's music you don't need to engage with. Background, lift music. Or the kind of thing you'd hear in a restaurant that was trying to be "urban" - but it would just be irritating.

neither crazy nor sexy nor cool

This is not a music style I care for and I was too young to be the audience for it when it came out, so I have no nostalgia attached to it. They do the genre well, but it's just not for me

In my opinion, there aren't many R&B/Hip-hop albums with unskippable tracks. This is certainly one of those unicorns. A must for any collection.

I did not hate it as much as I thought I would, at least the mixing felt pretty good. Most of it is just background noise, but some of the songs I did actually enjoy. I'm feeling sexy tonight.

Man, horny 90s R&B is gotta be one of the worst genres, so in comparison, this is... better? Still not very good... Some of this album sounds good but then I actually listen to the lyrics and I start wondering how anyone can take this seriously, or at the very least not get uncomfortable, but most of the time the songs boil down to the same thing, slow beat, and lyrics about fucking at night. Nothing much else to see here. I've also now had to listen to two different versions of "If I Was Your Girlfriend" because of this website now, and that song wasn't really worth more than the one try, didn't really need a lesser cover. Can't decide between 1 and 2 star, but gonna lean towards 2 star for the sake of not seeming overly hateful.

there were like 2 or 3 songs that were dope but the rest of it felt like some drawn out blubbery orgasm

Andre 3000!

Not my jam. There are interesting bits of R'n'B in it, the background music is pretty OK, but R'n'B is really a genre I struggle to enjoy. I don't hate it, but I really don't like it either.

This is decent mid nineties R&B. I don’t really like mid nineties R&B. I listened to 40mins on the way to work and back and had no real desire to hear the remaining 20.

You can forgive me for forgetting how massively popular this record was in 1994: I was a 13 and obsessed with the alt-rock and grunge of the day. The teenage girls in my suburban New Jersey town? They loved this record. It was huge, but it wasn’t for me. Still isn’t, but this was kind of a nice nostalgic listen, I guess.

This record has a LOT of cool cameos, and it definitely was produced well - it sounds pretty amazing. But this was definitely not my kind of music - I didn't really like music like this in the 90s and I feel the same about it now. My wife tells me I can't understand this because I was never a teenage girl 😬

Far more successful as an accomplished aeshetic than as a collection of outstanding songs. One outstanding song is better than none though. Plus a Prince cover. Plus Andre 3000.

The compositions and vocal harmonies are engaging, but without any solo vocal sections the LP feels way too homogenous. Wish it had leaned more into harder rhythms and flows and dropped the interludes as they completely derail the flow of the album

S̶p̶i̶c̶e̶ ̶G̶i̶r̶l̶s̶ ̶r̶i̶p̶o̶f̶f̶s̶ ̶o̶f̶ ̶t̶h̶e̶i̶r̶ ̶t̶i̶m̶e̶.̶ If you're going to make bedroom music, at least put effort into it. This album is guaranteed to give anyone who listens to it an erectile dysfunction. I don't find slurred-rapping and making out with the microphone 'crazy', 'sexy' or 'cool.' It just makes me self-conscious.

Man do I hate this slimy R&B music, that this sold 14 million albums makes me wonder if whole humanity was abducted by music-hating aliens implanting "I Love TLS" cells in people's brains. 1 star is more than enough I think.

Heck yeah. TLC on Valentine's Day. Banger. This isn't my usual listen but this group was obviously very good at what they do. Consistently strong throughout.

was gonna give this 4 stars but sexy interlude bumped it up to 5 ngl

Peak sexiness right here. So many classics and each beat was FATTTT. Shout out to puff daddy

Great album

- so funky, so sexy - strong guest flow - melodies are pretty fun

What a monster R&B album. Amazing. What is more surprising is the special guests on songs...and how they are titled with their "old" names. Great intricate chemistry between these 3.

Another one of my first CDs. I memorized left eye’s waterfalls verse when I was 8

Classic

As far as girl band RnB goes, "Crazysexycool" is surprisingly great. I wouldn't normally go for this kind of music but there is a certain understatement to much of the album that lets it breathe and allows it to just feel sexy without trying too hard. The beats are smooth, soulful, and often minimal. The vocals are young, sexy and free. It could be considered empowering in the sense of women proudly embracing their sexuality. "Waterfalls" is the clear hit here with just a hint of jazz underlining it all. The worst parts of the album are the interludes and skits, which were a generally an unnecessary bane on a lot of 90s albums. "Sexy" in particular breaks the narrative of the album by injecting crude humor into the album. It's unlistenable though part of me respects how subversive it is. And hey, Andre 3000 is on here too! Overall, a pleasant surprise.

not so crazy, somewhat sexy, but pretty cool.

This is a really terrific album. The production is ahead of its time (although still steeped in New Jack Swing). Singing is great, fantastic songs (esp Creep, Waterfalls). I love the cover of "If I was Your Girlfriend" - hard to cover Prince, esp at the height of his powers. I love the confidence of the group, although I really don't think we needed the interludes, which dilute the power of the powerful female presence on this record. Other than that, perfect.

I've mentioned in these notes before that I know next to nothing about R&B. That remains true, but I enjoy finding gems like this immensely. My entry into other genres has been more or less immediate through newly released albums or through systematically listening to the greats of the genre. R&B, on the other hand, is not something I love based on neo-soul, which I see as its genre successor. Neither is it something that I've dived into in a systematic way. Anyway, all that is to say that this is an album I likely wouldn't have listened to in any other way, and I really like it. It would easily be excellent if the instrumentation was less obviously synthetic, but the song quality and inclusion of 3 Stacks at the end make me think it'll hold up to repeat listens. The production is all relatively fresh and it strikes the right balance between sexiness and not taking itself too seriously. I'm not sure if any of the songs aside from Waterfall will be earworms, but they're all distinct and I didn't mind the skits either (which apparently makes me an outlier?).

Was hoping for more. Still an extra star for Waterfalls!

Solid, if a little outside my usual vibe. I like that all the male rappers are on interludes.

This is a solid album, but not my genre. And a little too horny. I'm not a fan of listening to people describe how they like their sexual encounters, unless I'm going to be an active participant. Even then I probably giggle too much.

Heard before: 'Waterfalls'. If you grew up in the 1990s, or contemporary R&B is your style, listen to this. Excellent production, great singing and very cohesive with the many interludes which have the group whispering, 'Crazy... sexy... cool' in the background. Yet, despite its cohesion, the songs don't all sound the same. However, I thought it was too long, and I neither liked nor disliked any of the songs. I don't mind 'Waterfalls' but it's not enough to justify a 4.

Les grosses chaudières de TLC viennent nous offrir un album très bien conçu dans son style, malheusement ce style ne me parle pas. En effet, les multiples provocations sexuelles offertes par les chagasses de TLC m'ont mis extrêmement mal à l'aise, petit florilège: "Nous recherchons quelques chose de long et dur, peux-tu nous aider?" "J'adore avaler un truc en particulier, peux-tu deviner quoi?" "Je suis bloqué les jambes écartées, est-ce que tu peux m'aider?" Tout bonnement insupportable.

Does what it says on the tin. 2/5

Saneambivalenttepid

Started off the album thinking that maybe it wasn’t going to be as bad as I was expecting. Finished the album realising it was every bit as bad as I was expecting.

I'm not really a fan of overtly horny songs. I'm not really a fan of this genre. I'm not really a fan of their voices. I didn't know 'Waterfalls' came from this. I wanted to stop before the album was over, but I powered through. Do I regret doing that? I don't know.

I don't even want to continue listening, 1/5

I'm glad I listened to it in terms of a timecapsule of a different era, and some songs were catchy and enjoyable enough. But not something I'd seek out to listen to again. I am glad we moved past the era of comedy skits on albums between songs

Guys, this is terrible. I'm only giving it one star because of the phone sex on the toilet gag on song number 12. The rest is just horny waterfalls.

I understand all this has meant for pop music. I appreciate the influence this has had on the later up and coming music diva's, from Christina Aguilera to Ariane Grande. I understand we have a young Andre 3000 and Busta Rhymes on here. I understand how people have good feelings about this from their youth. I appreciate that people like nodding their heads on these easy going flowing beats. I get that people got laid on this with the sexy and smooth R&B. But for me, this is absolutely nothing. I disliked it when it first came out, and I dislike it even more now. Background dribble.

I could make an argument for Waterfalls to be on the top 1001 songs to listen to list, but this album isn’t good. I tried to give them some credit for time period. Like maybe they inspired Destiny’s Child and TLC is now somehow responsible for Beyoncé - but I think that’s a real stretch. My favorite tracks (outside of Waterfalls) were the ones that Busta and Andre were on.

Hilariously dated and way too long. Perhaps you can find some redeeming qualities in som well-produced beats, and 'Sumthin' Wicked This Way Comes' was enjoyable, but it's just not enough for me. And can we just agree to drop it with pointless interludes? Thanks.

I sometimes wonder what the authors of 1,001 were thinking with certain albums and this is one of them. Waterfalls is the big hit that everyone talks about but I found it to be your typical pop R&B song that did nothing for me... and then it got worse.

I forgot I was listening to this while I was listening to this. I had a split second thought like "Damn, kinda quiet here. I should put some music on." and then I remembered this was playing. Not a fan at all. A chore to get through. "Waterfalls" was supposed to be the big hit but I didn't even register when the song started or ended.

Good for them.

CrazySexyCool, genau das ist das Album nicht. Viel zu lang, 16 Songs, davon 5 Interludes und trotzdem 56 Minuten. Alle außer ein Lied über 4 Minuten, der Inhalt: CrazySexCool, denkste... Highlight der Rap part am Anfang des letzten Songs "Lieblingssongs": 1. Waterfall 2. Sumthin´Wicked This Way Comes

YAAAY

Banger after banger. Sequenced to perfection. A mid 90s hip hop-informed r&b treasure with so much spunk.

Classic RnB, love it

I like this album much more than I thought I would. The song with Andre 3000 is particularly great. Overall, it does stand up, and it has a lot of amazing songs. I'd maybe give it a 4 for my own personal taste, since I'm not so into R&B and some of the album falls flatter to me, for that reason. But, I'd bump it up to 4.5 to add a bit for the overall influence and impact. However, since we can't do half-stars here, I'll bump it up to 5.

5*

A perfectly balanced no-skip R&B album. I’m slightly too young to have been a fan when it came out, but you still couldn’t escape Waterfalls. Still great!

Barely a track that doesn't hit hard. Could go without the interludes of 90s hip hop, but worth it for the main content!

So incredibly stellar, what a treat.

Just amazing perfect time capsule of a really awesome time in music.

Kick Your Game

🙌🙌🙌

CrazySexyCool is one of the sexiest records of all time and one of the very best albums of any genre of the 1990s. Read more about it: https://open.substack.com/pub/richcain/p/project-1001-crazysexycool-by-tlc?r=4ztyq&utm_campaign=post&utm_medium=web&showWelcomeOnShare=false

Awesome beats, better production, catchy melodies, great vocals and vibes. A peak intersection between 90s hip-hop, R&B, and pop. Best song: Waterfalls

Why don’t all R&B albums Sounds like this? It’s perfect from front to back. Not a single mediocre track here.

As good as R&B could get in the 90s… maybe ever. A

I've never listened to this full album, and I can say this morning that it is fucking flawless. No skips, amazing production & hooks, the interludes and skits are short and funny, the singles are perfect, and it deservedly went diamond and changed the course of pop r&b.

Usually not a fan of this kind of thing, but TLC nailed it. It's both fun and heartbreaking ("Waterfalls" tackles hip-hop themes from a female perspective), but it never gets into the kind of watery, schmaltzy filler tracks that usually drag this genre down.

banger

That took me back. I hadn't listened to this album in years. It still sounds great even now, 30 years later. There are a few filler tracks that do let it down, but there are more than enough absolute classics that far outweigh the weaker tracks and elevate it. It was ground-breaking in many ways at the time, and led to a whole host of other female groups combining R&B and rap.

I LOVE TLC ICONIC FOREVER

Cooool, smooth.

More fabulous than I recalled.

I never knew phife was on the opening interlude track. A ton of good singles off of this

The album title says it all. Beautiful R&B from the finest to do it.

This album is beyond amazing.

Amazing. Such a fun listen. A classic.

How is the album not more highly rated? Y'all are scrubs. This album is classic.

I got this at the time off the back of Waterfalls and Creep. It only sounds better over time. It has Andre 3000, Busta and Phife as guests. And yet Left Eye's bars are the best on the album. It's soooo good.

I was nine years old when this album came out, and sadly, this is my first time listening to this from start to finish. R&B and Hip Hop were pretty much forbidden in my household when I was growing up (if you were to sneak up behind my parents and whisper "Antifa" at them, they'd probably drop dead of fright), but this album was so omnipresent in popular culture that even a sheltered kid like me knew "Waterfalls" and "Creep." It always blows my mind that this album came out in 1994, because "Waterfalls" was in heavy rotation on the radio for what felt like five years. R&B is probably one of my least favorite genres, but I thought this album was really good. It's incredibly well produced, features some great lyrics, and has some great arrangements. Not every track is a winner, but the songs that stand out are rich in sound; the arrangements are simple, but incredibly catchy and melodic. The horns on “Creep,” the guitar on “Red Light Special,” and the soulful synthesizers on “Diggin’ On You” are fantastic and set these songs apart as some of the best work on the album. As good as those songs are though, “Waterfalls” is easily the crowning achievement of this album. The wah-wah synthesizers, the horn interludes, and the incredibly catchy lyrics make this one of the best songs on the decade. The drums and bassline make this song an absolute delight to groove to, creating a stark contrast to the dark themes of the lyrics. This album is soulful, mature, and sexy, making it a standout of the decade. I was going to give this album four stars, because a few songs are duds, and I wasn’t wild about the vocals, but after sitting down to write this review, I’ve changed my mind, and I think that this album is worthy of five stars from me. I had a really fun time going through this, and it’s an album I’d put on again.

Day 11 of listening to 1001 albums one day at a time. Honestly this album lives up to its name. It’s crazy, it’s sexy, it’s cool. The album has a lot of classics like waterfalls or creep and I think with those being the most popular they probably say the most on the entire album. It has a great mix of hip hop infused into to some tracks, love the Andre 3000 feature at the end. You can definitely see this album laying down the frame work for other R&B groups to come and it’s very influential. It’s a fun and sexy album that I think does everything it set out to do.

This indeed made me feel crazysexycool. 10 of 10 would listen again.

sexy and good music. didn't know anything from them except no scrubs but def will give them another listen. really good music and fun!

Crazy, sexy, cool is right. Between the slow jams and the karaoke bangers (Waterfalls is my go-to), this album was amazing then, and it's amazing now! Plus points for a record where even the interludes are enjoyable.

Cool

Wow. One of the best RnB/Pop albums

All I knew about this album going in was that my kid has it on a tshirt and I don’t really like Waterfalls. (Not even the Weird Al version!) So when I told my wife this was the album of the day she said “Oooh, you’ll like it!” I was curious to see. And I really did! It really is crazy, sexy, and cool. Good beats, tight vocals, fun lyrics. I still don’t like Waterfalls though. Songs added to Spotify: 4

GREAT RnB album! grew up with a lot of thee songs without realizing it. stand outs are of course Creep and Waterfalls (also the music video with its time appropriate CGI), listened to this from start to finish and enjoyed the whole experience

10/5

One of the best ever!

I liked it.

Hits all three targets! I'd say 25% crazy, 35% sexy and 100% cool, showing that it is 160% as good as most albums. Two massive hits, up there with any 90s r&b pop, and a bunch of tracks way better than mere "filler". I'm still not a huge fan of skits and interludes, but they work well here. Also, so many very cool guests - which I didn't really know before. A great album.

Crazysexycool is an album that lives up to its name. I know that I have listened to this album before, but it's been a long time and there were many tracks that didn't ring a bell for me. It's really good!

I had Ooohhhhh...On the TLC Tip back in the day and enjoyed it well enough. Heard Waterfalls on the TV/radio a LOT and liked it well enough, too. But I don't think I ever listened to all of Crazysexycool so this was mostly new. Had a lot of fun grooving with T-Boz, Left-Eye, and Chilli today and look forward to doing it again. Crazy, sexy, and cool.

I did not think I was going to love this album. Sure I like Waterfalls well enough. But a whole album? Didn’t listen to it back in ‘94 and didn’t feel the need to do so today. It’s homework so here we go… The sound of this wasn’t any big surprise. Pretty much what I would expect (except maybe the yowling cat on Kick Your Game - who’d a thought THAT could work so well?!). What was a surprise was how much I enjoyed this! These ladies are… well… CrazySexyCool… as advertised. The vibe was laid back and hit me oh so right today. I love it when my old judgy self gets a little schooling… and class went down oh so well today.

I’ve always felt that tlc were either brilliant geniuses or untalented hacks. I’m still not sure. I picked in 1994 that they’d ripped off McCartney in waterfalls. Big fan of McCartney II. But then TLC groove. It’s a tragic tale of left eye. But a tragic death doesn’t mean you were air weren’t a genius. I’m giving this five. But if it turns out they are untalented hacks they get 1.